


Born Of Men by Azrael

by GO_Library_archivist



Category: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Drabble, Religious Content, Spiritual
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-26
Updated: 2013-09-26
Packaged: 2017-12-27 17:32:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/981686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GO_Library_archivist/pseuds/GO_Library_archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five drabbles, one for each Horseperson of the Apocalypse. War. Famine. Pestilence. Pollution. Death.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Born Of Men by Azrael

**Author's Note:**

> Note from [Quantum_Witch](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Quantum_Witch/profile): This story was originally archived at [The Good Omens Library](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Good_Omens_Library), which I maintained for eight years until I closed it due to lack of funds and decreased usership. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing the GOL's stories to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in July 2013. I e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this author, please contact me using the e-mail address on [The Good Omens Library collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/TheGoodOmensLibrary/profile), or through the [GO_Library_archivist](http://archiveofourown.org/users/GO_Library_archivist/profile) account.

Born Of Men by Azrael

  
Summary: Five drabbles, one for each Horseperson of the Apocalypse. War. Famine. Pestilence. Pollution. Death.  
Categories: General Fanfic Characters:  None  
Genres:  Spiritual/Religious  
Chapters:  1 Completed: Yes  
Word count: 305 Read: 286  
Published: 13 Apr 2009 Updated: 13 Apr 2009

 

Story Notes:

Focussing on the Apocalyptic Horsepersons of Good Omens, including Pestilence, who's way too active to still be a retiree. One drabble for each of the five. Non-GO fans can still get this; in the book, Pollution took over as a Horseman after Pestilence 'retired' due to the discovery of penicillin. Disclaimer: Good Omens belongs to the geniuses Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.

 

* * *

 

**War**   

 She is in the cold desperation of a soldier's eyes, the speed of a bullet as it flies through the air, the dying cry of the fatally hurt, the blood that seeps into the earth.  

 She walks among them, unseen, revelling in the libations of blood and the offerings of weapons; the blood-soaked evening sky is reflected in her eyes as she laughs.

  **Famine**   

 He is in the dry, cracked land, the failed crops, the empty bowls, the weakened limbs that grasp futilely at empty air, imagining food, the vulture who watches and waits for a child to die. 

  He opens his mouth and devours the engorged bellies and spindly limbs, and meets the gazes that search so desperately for food.

  **Pestilence**  

  He is in the dry cough that racks a woman's thin body, the spots that cover a child's skin, the evil-smelling pus flowing from wounds, the feverish heat of clammy foreheads. 

  He licks the pus and strokes the spots, and laughs at the tiny white pills and thick sugary liquids that presume to stop him.

  **Pollution**   

 He is in the rainbow-coloured oil slick that spreads upon the ocean's surface, the curling tendrils of smoke spiralling upwards into the now-grey sky, the funeral pyres of rainforests, the sting of acid in the spring rain. 

  He admires his work as an artist would his masterpiece, and marvels at the sheer beauty of it all.

**Death**  

  He is everywhere; in the withered bones of an old man in a hospital, in the mangled bodies on a battlefield, in the starved eyes of a child, in the oil-coated wings of now flightless birds, in the richest palace and the filthiest slum, in the driest desert and coldest iceland.  

 He is Azrael, Creation's shadow, everywhere at once; he is both feared and worshipped, and he never gives back what he takes. 

 

* * *

 

  
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.

This story archived at <http://library.good-omens.net/viewstory.php?sid=443>


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